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(No Model.) s sheets-sheet 2. C. W. VAN VLEET. DEVIB FOR PACKING GIGARETTES.

No. 507,696. Patented Oct. 31, 1893.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

o. W. VAN VLEBT. DEVICE FOR PACKING GIGARETTBS. 10.507,696. Patented ont. 31,1893.

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pag.14. x -4 L mg; 2%* (I b UNITED STATES vPATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES W. VAN 'VLEET, `OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF TO JAMES P. .OSBORNE, OF SAME PLACE.

DEVICE FOR PACKING CIGARETTES.

SPECIFICATION forming partl of Letters Patent N o. 507,696, dated October 31, 1893.

i Application filed December 15, 1891. Serial No. 415,418. (No model.)

,To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Beit known that I, CHARLES W.VAN VLEET, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Devices for Packing Cigarettes or other Cylindrical Objects of Slmilar Form, of which the following is a speclflcation, reference being had tothe acto companying drawings, in Which- .Figure 1 is a top plan view of my device. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on the line .9c-a: of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an end view of the box-holder [5 when partly open. Fig. 5 is an end View of the box-holder when shut. Fig. 6 isa view of the box-holder when Wide open. Fig. 7 is a face view of the cam wheel to operate the lever for oscillating the box-holder. Fig. 8 is zo a cross sectional view of the straightening wheel on the line y-y of Fig. 2. Fig. 9 is a face view of the cam wheel to operate the plunger for filling the cigarette box. Fig. 10

is a plan view of the slide of the cigarette box lying fiat. Fig. 11 is a perspectiveview of the cover of the cigarette box. Fig. 12is a top plan view of part of my device. Fig. 13 isa sectional View on the line 2-2 of Fig. 12. Fig. 14. is a sectional view on the line 1-1 of 3o Fig. 12. Fig. 15 is a sectional view on the line 1-1 of Fig. 12, after the plunger Y has advanced. Fig. 16 is a side view of the folder.

-My lnvention relates to the devices hereinafter described and claimed for packing cigar- 3 5 ettes or any other cylindrical objects of similar form, but in this specification the machine will be described as applied to packing cigarettes.

The objects of myinvention are to provide 4o automatic devices for arranging and for counting out a pre-determined number of cigarettes, placing them regularly into a boxand inserting such box into a cover.

The machine is composed of a device for placing irregularly laid cigarettes in regular order in a delivery device; a device for holding a drawer or box in position to receive the cigarettes; a device for counting out a predetermined number of such cigarettes and 5o removing them from the delivery device; a device for placing the cigarettes in a drawer or box, and devices for inserting such drawer or box in a cover. These devices may be used separately or in combination.

In the drawings A represents the bed of the machine.

B represents the driving shaft which is supported in suitable boxes and hasvupon it a suitable driving pulley and also a series of cam wheels and a pulley as hereinafter de- 6o scribed.

Upon the bed A is placed a standard c upon which is placed a small table C. This serves to receive cigarettes after they have been completely manufactured and have been inspected as is usual in cigarette4 factories. From the table C the cigarettes are moved to an inclined plane or chute D having longitudinal slots in the bottom thereof. Underneath this chute travels the belt F the upper 7o side of which is caused to move in a direction from the higher or receiving end of the chute to the lower or delivery end. From the outer surface of this belt protrude short pins f f which pass through the slots in the chute. This chute is preferably grooved longitudinally as shown in Fig. 8, each groove thereof being shaped to allow the cigarettes to lie therein (see Fig. 8) and there is a slot eat the bottom of each groove extending through the 8o bottom of the chute. The pinsff extend a short distanceinto these grooves through the slots e e and when the belt is moved in the direction above described, the cigarettes lying in the grooves Will be moved by the pins S5 ff downward toward the end of the chute. Above the chute and near the upper end thereof is a transverse wheel G having a series of teeth g g which are so spaced upon said wheel as topermi't a cigarette lying in 9o one of the grooves of the chute to pass be. tween the teeth. This wheel revolves in the direction shown by the arrow in Fig. 2 and serves to straighten the cigarettes which are delivered from the table C, by a combing action, as shown in Fig. 1. Care must be taken that the pinson the belt F and on the wheel G are blunt and that the wheel and belt do not move so fast as to tear the covers of the cigarettes. By the motion of the belt F the too cigarettes are delivered straightened and in regular order, at the delivery end of the chute.

ushown bythe arrows.

tower.

They Ythen pass into a tower or hopper H which `consists of a box of transverse dimensions great enough to receive a suitable number of cigarettes in a layer. The tower is preferably placed vertically. The upper part of the tower is divided by a series of thin vertical partitions h h (see Fig. 3), into as many spaces as may be selected for the number of cigarettes to be finally delivered in a layer and the partitions are separated by about the diameter of a cigarette, so as to permit the same to descend freely. The number of partitions correspond to the number of grooves in the chute D, and to the number of spaces between the teeth of the wheel G, so that the cigarettes in each groove will be delivered into corresponding divisionsin `the tower.

While the cigarettes may be delivered to the towerwith great regularity as regards; parallelism, there will still Vbe som'e'irregu-` larity as to their complete superposition, or;

invothenwords the ends of some cigarettes may extend beyond the ends of the others.`

yof` belts J J which are set on` pulleys on opposite sides ofthe tower H and opposite the two open sides thereof.

belts will move or gently wipe the cigarettes into position so that they will becomecompletely superimposed and lie with perfect regularity in the tower H. The partitions h h donot extend to the very bottom of the tower-,see Fig. As shown inthe drawings ten cigarettes are the number selected i to be placed in a box, and with that in View the of the tower, at the bottom and opposite the. endsrof the ten lowest cigarettesis anaper` ture about `equal to thecross sectionof the `mass of cigarettes to be pressedout. `i This aperture `is adapted to receive theend of a plunger K which is operated by a suitable cam l upon a suitable wheel L whiclris fixed upon `the driving shaft B. The cam l produces a reciprocating` motion of the plunger,

and atieach forward movement (the` stroke being `properly regulated) ten cigarettes will be prcssedlthrough the aperture in the tower opposite the aperture at which the plunger K enters. These apertures and also the plunger are proportioned so Athat'only aselected number of cigarettes,ten or more or less, will be moved from the base of the massin the In front of the towerand acrossthe bed A of the machine is a guide-way having In order to straighten These belts arel slightly inclined to each otherasshown in` Fig. 2 and are caused tomovein the direction The motion of these suitable guides M M on either side thereof. Upon these guides moves the box holder N. This box holder is composed of a bed piece n see Figs. 4 and 5, and the two side pieces o o. The side pieces are hinged to the bed piece in` such a way as to be capable of opening to a proper extent, (see Figs. 4 and 6.) Two fingers p p are attached to the top edge of the side-pieces o o and ext-end over the contents of the box-holder when the sides o o are closed and brought into the position shown in Fig. 5. A suitable spring catch q is attached to the box-holder in order to fasten the sides inthe position shown in Fig. 5 and vthus to hold them until the box is removed from the holder. In order to close the side pieces 0 o atthe proper times, I provide a fork P which is xed upon a rod Q. This rod moves vertically in the support R Fig. 2, and is operated by the lever S which is moved by the solid cam T, Fig. 2,0nthe shaft B. The support R is fixed rigidly to the bottom of the bed A, and the motion of the lever to cause the fork P to rise or fall is `so adjusted that the fork rises as soon as the box-holder`N `is brought opposite-the aperture in the tower H, and immediately falls away from the boxholder so as to permit the transverse move- 95 table, engages with `the camX/V, Figs. l and 105 6, through the arm w. Themotion offthis cam, which is fastened upon the driving shaft B will cause the lever U totoscillate backward and forward, and thisoscillation will move the box-holder N upon the guides-MM from one side of the-table to the other.

The usual form of cigarette box is shown in Figs. l0 and ll, and is there shown ofthe proportions adapted to` hold ten cigarettes.

These boxes come from the manufacturerin x15 `thetwo parts `shown `in `thefigures, viz:`-a slide c and a cover b. The slide has side wings and end pieces which fold inisuch a way-aste form a closed box whichfits intoa cover b. The slide a comes fromthemanuizo facturer fiat as shown in Fig. 10 and scored or indented upon the dottedlines,so thatthe folding` of it into a suitable box form willbe easily made.

\ Vhen my device isin operation andbefore 125 the plunger Kforces the cigarettes out from the bottom of the tower II, one of these slides a is placed in the open box-holderNand takes the position as shown in Figs. 2 and 4 with theshort end bent downward and with the opening close 13o to the aperture in the tower. The plungerthen forces a selected n u mber of cigarettes into the slide (see Fig. 4). The fork P rises and its two prongs press the sides o o ofthe box-holder and close the same upon the slide a and its contents. The catch q fastens the box-holder into position, holding the cigarettes therein. The revolution of thedriving shaft B now causes the lever U to oscillate and this moves the box-holder N across the bed of thel table A. Guides X and X on the bed of the table force the ends of the slide a into vertical positions and the guide X has a curved lip m which at the end of the motion turns the short end o f the slide over the cigarettes. When the box-holder reaches its extreme position at the end of the guides, a cam Z on the shaft B moves a lug z which is fastened to and operates a plunger Y, which pushes the slide out of the box-holder N through a contracting orifice A and into the cover b which liesl against the opening of the orifice and within the frame B, formed to receive it. As the plunger Y forces the slide a, with the inclosed cigarettes, through the orifice A into the cover b, the long end of the slide ct is closed down upon the bundle of cigarettes, and the operation is complete. When the plungerY reaches its extreme position in pushing the slide out of the box-holder, a lug r on the plunger raises the catch q and allows the boxholder to open ready to receive another slide, andthe operations above described are repeated after the box-holder is moved'back to its first position by the revolution of the cam W and the oscillation of the lever U.

Suitable gearing such as a belt is provided to connect the driving wheels of the comb G, belt F and belts J J with the main driving shaft B anda pulley thereon. A cross belt is used to connect the' pulleys on which the belts J J run.

What I claim is- 1. A device for arranging cigarettes, consisting of a vertical tower or hopper having an opening in the base and vertical partitions separated from each other by about the diameter of a cigarette, and means for causing the cigarettes to lie'parallel to each other and for delivering the same to the hopper and between thepartitions, substantially as set forth.

2. A device for arranging cigarettes consisting of a grooved chute having longitudinal slots in its bottom, a belt placed underneath the chute and arranged to move in the direction of the length thereof, and provided with pins passing through slots in the chute substantially as set forth.

3. A device for arranging cigarettes consisting of a chute having longitudinal grooves in its bottom, and a slotin the bottom of each groove, a belt placed underneath the chute and arranged to move in the direction of the length thereof and provided with pins pass` ing through the slots in the chute and means for guiding the cigarettes upon said chute and into the grooves, substantially as set forth.

4. A device for arranging cigarettes, consisting of a longitudinally grooved chute having longitudinal slots in its bottom, a belt longitudinally in the chute and a tower or hopperinto which the cigarettes are delivered horizontally from the chute and side by side, su bstantiallyas set forth.

6. A device for arranging cigarettes consisting of a chute having a series of parallel,

longitudinal, adjacent grooves in the bottom gthereof, means for causing the cigarettes to lie longitudinally in said grooves and means 4for causing the same to move forward therein yand a tower or hopper having a series of vertical divisions corresponding in number to,

said grooves whereby the cigarettes in each groove are delivered into the corresponding division in said hopper, substantially as set 2 LOIth.

7. A device for arranging cigarettes, consisting of a longitudinally grooved chute,

means for causing the cigarettes to lie'in said grooves and to move forward therein, a hopper or tower adapted to receive said cigarettes and provided with longitudinal parti- 1 tions separated from each other by about the diameter of a cigarette, substantially as set forth.

8. A device for arranging cigarettes consisting of a stationary, longitudinally grooved and slotted chute, a combing wheel as G, a movable belt as F provided with pins extending through the slots and into the grooves of said chute, a tower as H provided with vertical divisions, and belts as J J, for the purposes described, substantially as set forth.

9. In a device for packing cigarettes, a longitudinally grooved chute, means for causing the cigarettes to move forward in the grooves and for straightening the same therein, a tower or hopper adapted to receive the cigarettes, and having an aperture at the base through which a predetermined number of cigarettes may be expressed, means for causing the cigarettes to lie in regular columns in said tower as vertical vpartitions in said tower separated from each other by about the diameter of a cigarette, means as a reciprocating plunger, adapted to force said vcigarettes through said aperture, substantially as set forth.

lO. In a device for packing cigarettes, a chute having a series of parallel, longitudinal grooves in the bottom thereof, means for causing cigarettes to move forward longitudinally in said grooves and for straightening the same therein, a tower or hopper adapted to receive the cigarettes in horizontal layers, and having an aperture at the base through which a predetermined number of cigarettes may be expressed, means for causing the cigarettes IOO IIO

to lie in regular columns in said tower, as parallel vertical partitions in said tower separated from each other by about the diameter of a cigarette, means, as a horizontal plunger, adapted to force said cigarettes through said aperture, substantially as set forth.

11. In a device for packing cigarettes, in combination With means substantially as described for delivering a pre-determined number of regularly arranged cigarettes in a boxholder N adapted to hold the slide of an ordi nary cigarette boX, a box-holder N, means, as the guide X and frame A, for folding the ends of the slide over the cigarettes, and means, as the plunger Y, for forcing the folded slide into a cover, substantially as set forth.

l2. In a device for packing cigarettes, in combination with means for delivering a predetermined number of regularly arranged cigarettes to a tower or hopper H, the combination of a box-holder as N, consisting of a bed piece as a, folding sides as o 0, means, as the fork P, catch q, and lugo', on the plunger Y for opening and closing said sides at regu lar intervals, devices, as the tower H and plunger K, for forcing said number of cigarettes into the slide of a cigarette box placed in said box-holder, means, as the guide X and the frame A, for folding the ends of said slide over said cigarettes, means, as the pl unger Y, for forcing the folded slide into a cover and means, as the lever U and cam W for reciprocating said box-holder between the point of delivery of said cigarettes and the point where the folded slide is forced into a cover, substantially as set forth.

13. In a device for packing cigarettes a longitudinally grooved chute, means for causing the cigarettes to move forward in the grooves and for straightening the saine therein,at0wer or hopper adapted to receive the cigarettes, and having an aperture at the base through which a pre-determined number of cigarettes may be expressed, means for causing the cigarettes to lie in regular columns therein as vertical partitions in said tower separated from each other by about the diameter of a cigarette, a reciprocating plunger adapted to force said cigarettes through said aperture, a box-holder adapted to open and close and formed to hold the slide of an ordinary cigarette box to receive the cigarettes expressed by said plunger, means for folding the ends of said slide over the cigarettes, and devices whereby the slideris forced into a suitable cover, substantially as set forth.

14. In a device for arranging cigarettes, a tower or hopper open at parts of two sides thereot',and guidingr and compressing devices, as the inclined belts .I J, operating against the ends of the cigarettes in said hopper, whereby the ends of the cigarettes are brought into alignment, substantially as set forth.

CHARLES XV. VAN VLEET.

Witnesses:

W. W. CRAIG, THOMAS G. OUTERBRIDGE. 

